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Many people wonder what the benefits would be of having “their” river designated to the Canadian Heritage Rivers System (CHRS). Here we try to answer this and other related questions. What does designation mean? Designation is the formal proclamation of a river as a “Canadian Heritage River” by Canada's Environmen Minister and the equivalent provincial or territorial minister. The river would join an elite group of the most historic and beautiful rivers in Canada, in places ranging from the barrens of the Northwest Territories to the heartland of southern Ontario. It must be emphasized that designating a river to the Canadian Heritage Rivers System (CHRS) is not an end in itself – it will not automatically bring major benefits to your river or its valley. It is, however, an opportunity to help determine your river’s future and to improve the quality of life of people living near it. With designation comes a commitment by the managing governments to work with “stakeholders” of a river – residents, local governments, landowners, businesses, aboriginal groups and other interested parties – to carry out certain actions contained in a management strategy. The management strategy outlines how the river and its key heritage and recreational features will be managed in the long term. How could our community benefit financially? Does designation equal dollars? Not directly. CHR designation does bring recognition and status. The System as a whole is promoted nationally and internationally. Broader recognition of the heritage value of your river valley is an opportunity to market the river. You don’t have to, but if you want to showcase your particular river, you can do it better if it is a Canadian Heritage River. You could also appeal more effectively to future residents as well as to visitors by advertising the particular qualities your river valley might offer as a Canadian Heritage River. These could include it being:
By helping to attract visitors, new residents, money and/or jobs, designation can help to increase employment opportunities in your community’s service and retail sectors. In 1997, it was estimated that the annual economic benefits to Canada attributable to the Canadian Heritage Rivers System totalled some $32 million. What about non-monetary benefits? You and your community could benefit from various recreational, cultural and environmental improvements. Environment: Designation can do a lot to maintain or improve your river's environmental health. Designation requires the managing agency to monitor the river ecosystem and water quality, and to produce after ten years a report that includes information on the state of the river, the integrity of its ecosystem and the status of its natural heritage features. Designation can also provide the impetus to stimulate community involvement in river ecosystem restoration projects. Recreation: Opportunities for outdoor recreation along a Canadian Heritage River are enhanced, in particular (but not exclusively) water-based types of recreation. The management strategy could encourage facilities for activities that are compatible with the natural environment and scenery. Heritage Appreciation: As well as protection, education can be an important element of the management strategy. Designation can mean more opportunities for you and your children to learn about your valley’s natural and cultural heritage including your own particular traditions and culture. Preservation of Historic Sites: Publicity surrounding designation could generate the support needed to get your community involved in saving some of the fine old buildings near the river. The management strategy could help ensure that ancient aboriginal sites and key elements of the valley’s “cultural landscape” are respected and protected. Community Development: The process of preparing a management strategy and then implementing it requires that stakeholders along the river are consulted on what should be done. Public involvement allows planners to learn of people’s concerns and gives stakeholders a real voice in the future of their river. It also helps to develop a sense of ownership, responsibility and community among those whose lives are affected by the river. What’s in it for the river? Initially, the river may benefit from monitoring and conservation measures taken by government agencies. This is just a start, however, and the river will benefit more in the long run if local residents and other stakeholders become the “stewards” of the river. Appreciation of the river by its resident community is the best way of ensuring long-term protection. Co-ordinated River Management: The process of preparing a management strategy focuses on the heritage and recreational values of the river and its valley. It is not a general land-use plan. The strategy serves to draw together all parties interested in the river’s heritage and recreation to work together to a common end. These stakeholders include not only local residents, interest groups and river users, but also government agencies having environmental, heritage or recreational responsibilities. Coordinating the planning and management activities of these agencies inevitably results in better co-ordination of existing programs, in reducing conflicts among different river users and in creating more effective new programs for the river. Greater Environmental Protection: Designation is an opportunity for not only the lead provincial or territorial agency, but also for local governments to adopt policies that will enhance protection of the river. Measures could include green space zoning of river banks or property tax rate adjustments to encourage stewardship of private lands. Local residents might be supported in setting up a “river watchdog network” or hotline. It is also a chance to address specific environmental issues on your river such as vegetation destruction, bank erosion, garbage, floodplain urbanization or fish stock depletion, as well as enforcement measures for resolving these. Water Quality Improvement: All of the features for which a Canadian Heritage River is nominated must be monitored. The one feature that is probably most closely watched is water quality. Monitoring programs on water quality have been started or upgraded on a number of Canadian Heritage Rivers as a direct result of their designation. Focus for Government Programs: Many federal and provincial government programs can affect the heritage and recreational features of a river (perhaps too many in the view of some). These include environmental research, water quality monitoring, tourism development, fishery enhancement, reforestation, wildlife studies, and so on. Each government agency needs criteria to select areas for their programs. Government agencies can, and have used the designation of a Canadian Heritage River as a deciding factor in choosing where their programs should be located. How might I benefit personally? There are many different ways in which you could personally benefit from CHRS designation. Common improvements to heritage rivers in densely settled parts of Canada include a healthier environment, cleaner water, scenic and aesthetic improvements, more opportunities for recreation and heritage appreciation, better and more sustainable business opportunities, easier resolution and prevention of conflicts over water use. Each of these brings benefits to all individuals in a river valley. On rivers in remote areas, wilderness values can be preserved for solitude and spiritual renewal, and cultural pride can be promoted, particularly for aboriginal peoples. As well, some business opportunities could be created, most often in outfitting, guiding and local arts and crafts. Designation will benefit individuals differently according to their occupations, where they live, and what they value most. The range of benefits that could accrue to any one individual or to a community is not easily predicted. Having input on how your river is managed, however, allows you to “tailor” the benefits of CHRS designation to some extent. But our river is fine as it is! It may be hard to believe, but your river valley will change within your lifetime. You can be sure that a river, even if it is in a park or other type of protected area, is not immune to external threats. Designation to the Canadian Heritage Rivers System is no guarantee against these threats, but it is often your best opportunity to help secure the future of your river, by minimizing undesirable changes and helping ensure that the changes which do occur are beneficial. Is there a downside to designation? People are sometimes concerned that designation will curtail landowner rights and freedoms, or restrict development, or cost taxpayers money, or attract too many people and with them problems like trespassing and vandalism. Here are some responses to those concerns. Landowner Rights and Freedoms: To date, all protective actions on Canadian Heritage Rivers have depended on enforcement of existing laws and regulations, and on the voluntary actions of stakeholders. Experience has shown that effective management of a designated river can only be achieved with landowners’ involvement in decisions and their willing stewardship of their properties. Even non-participating landowners benefit from environmental improvements through higher property values. Restrictions on Development: The primary goal in managing a Canadian Heritage River is to protect the heritage features for which it was included in the System. This means that timber harvesting, mining and other industrial activities can continue so long as they do not affect these heritage features. Potentially damaging developments within the management area may be restricted by local or other government authorities, while sustainable and complementary developments, such as certain recreational facilities, may be encouraged. Through this type of sustainable development, the community as a whole benefits in the long term. Costing Taxpayers’ Money: Co-ordinated planning is actually a more efficient way of using taxpayers’ money. Some up-front expenditures on planning and public involvement reap far larger long-term benefits by ensuring that public funds are not spent on overlapping, conflicting or unpopular programs. In many cases, implementing programs will depend on volunteers, often attracted by the national recognition given to a river by its designation. Trespassing and Vandalism: There is no evidence that these problems have increased on a Canadian Heritage River. In fact, the status that comes with designation, together with community involvement and civic pride, discourage these types of behaviour. Such problems might occur where tourism increases substantially. But even then, mechanisms established through designation can help, such as controlling public access to the river, directing visitors to specific locations, education programs and promoting codes of personal conduct. Increased Government Interference: Nominating agencies retain their general legal jurisdiction over lands along designated rivers. As designation is not legislated by the federal government, an additional layer of bureaucracy is not created. In any case, governments in Canada can no longer afford to become directly involved in more land resource management and fewer still can acquire property. That is why many of the benefits described here depend on the voluntary participation of local residents and other stakeholders. How Does a River Become a Canadian Heritage River? The objective of the Canadian Heritage Rivers System (CHRS) is to include rivers that represent the best examples of Canada's river heritage, and to ensure that these rivers are managed so that their heritage values are recognized and conserved. The driving force behind Canadian Heritage Rivers is people. When a community or a group expresses interest in having their river designated as a Canadian Heritage River, they approach their Canadian Heritage River board member(s) armed with information documenting the outstanding values of the river and demonstrating that there is plenty of community support. If the river appears to meet Heritage River criteria, the government with jurisdiction over the river prepares a background study. As the first step in the process, background studies collect all available information, including field verification, on a river's natural and cultural heritage, its recreational opportunities, and issues that could affect its management as a Canadian Heritage River. If the background study indicates that the river does indeed meet CHRS guidelines, the next step is the preparation of a Nomination Document. The Nomination Document highlights the outstanding natural, cultural and recreational values of the river and how those values could be protected or enhanced. It is presented to the Canadian Heritage Rivers Board for formal review. The Board then recommends to the Minister of Canadian Heritage and the appropriate provincial or territorial minister, whether or not a river meets CHRS criteria and if it should be considered for inclusion in the System. Before designation, a management plan, or heritage strategy, must be submitted to the Board that describes the management area and the policies and actions to be put into place to fulfill CHRS objectives. This document is reviewed by the Board to ensure that there is a commitment to manage the river so that its heritage values are not degraded. Once the plan is accepted by the Board, and the designation approved by Ministers, the next step in the process is the plaque unveiling ceremony to commemorate the formal inclusion of the river in the CHRS. This, however, is not the end of the CHRS process. Yearly status reports must be submitted, on the condition of the river, and every ten years a "State-of-the-River" Report must be submitted to the Board.
If you have any other questions about what CHRS designation can do for your river, call the CHR Board Secretariat (819-994-2913), Parks Canada (819-953-9497) or your local board member. Or e-mail us at donald.gibson@pc.gc.ca. |
